How old was your rabbit when it passed away?

I was wondering how long everyone's rabbit had lived for and did they pass away naturally or did something happen to them?

My rabbit is coming up to 11 years old now. I'm getting concerned about his well being. One of his eyes is weeping and causing his fur around his eyes to crust. It is extremely hard trying to get rid of the crustiness. I gently try to tease it out and when I do it feels like tiny grains of salt. Probably from the salt in his tears. Wiping it with cooled boiled water has no effect.

After much research I've come to the conclusion that his teeth might be the problem. I'm worried that he will be too old for his teeth to be filed? down and will cause him a lot of stress as he is so old. Do you think this will be the case?

I've also noticed recently that he has sores / pink calluses on his back feet. Sore hocks? He was an outdoor rabbit until last winter when we moved him indoors. I've adapted his living space with soft flooring and made sure his nails are well trimmed. It doesn't help that he keeps stepping in his urine. I think he may be going a bit senile now as his litter training has gone out the window. He has been so good until recently.

Will treating his eyes/teeth and sore be too much for this old fella? Other half says I should consider putting him down :'( He's eating well but not as active as he use to be.

Not sure what to do :S

11 years old is VERY old. What an amazing chap! Yes, it sounds like his teeth are playing up and he does indeed have sore hocks.
I'd take him to a bunny savvy vet to get an opinion about both these issues.
Best of luck! x x

*Spider* said:

11 years old is VERY old. What an amazing chap! Yes, it sounds like his teeth are playing up and he does indeed have sore hocks.
I'd take him to a bunny savvy vet to get an opinion about both these issues.
Best of luck! x x

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Agree with this.. what a brilliant age..

Aww thanks. I make sure he has a good diet and living area. Had a massive run during the day until recently, all the grass he could eat. A few worrying moments for me when he had GI statis, but I can spot this now and make sure he's hydrated and eating. He's had it about 3 times over his life time.

He also got fly strike last year which nearly killed him had I not caught it. Vet said maggots were at stage 3. There are 4 stages!! :O He had some eggs laid on him this year but spotted them when I was grooming him. He seems to be getting them as he's older so can't really clean himself so easily Which makes me hesitant in leaving him outside during the day.

I had a bun when I was younger who lived til he was ten and he died of flystrike. It's very easy for them to get at that age and if you nursed him through that it sounds amazing!

He might be able to have a "conscious dental" at the vets so they don't have to put him under. I think you should just go to the vet and ask...

I think a sign that they are still good is if they still love their food, and he certainly still seems to.

van1lla said:

Aww thanks. I make sure he has a good diet and living area. Had a massive run during the day until recently, all the grass he could eat. A few worrying moments for me when he had GI statis, but I can spot this now and make sure he's hydrated and eating. He's had it about 3 times over his life time.

He also got fly strike last year which nearly killed him had I not caught it. Vet said maggots were at stage 3. There are 4 stages!! :O He had some eggs laid on him this year but spotted them when I was grooming him. He seems to be getting them as he's older so can't really clean himself so easily Which makes me hesitant in leaving him outside during the day.

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Poor lad! I would definitley get him checked over by a vet that knows his stuff with Bunnies, like Spider said. But I am guessing that you already have one, as you bun has had such a long and healthy life!

Don't make any decisions till then.. I would love to see a pic of him, I have never heard of a bun that old!

My two are just a year old, I hope they live such a happy and healthy life

He's only been to the Vets twice in his lifetime

van1lla said:

He's only been to the Vets twice in his lifetime

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Thats brilliant. I bet you love him loads

Bless, I would def get him to the vets before it becomes a real issue -he may be in pain too

Pearl died from an enlarged heart just a few months before her 3rd birthday

Hi :wave:
My Sherpa had to be pts in August. He was nine, and his problems started with weepy eyes. I risked him under anaesthetic twice. The first time for a dental and xrays. the vet found that his teeth had aged so much that the roots were curling and would eventually cause abcesses. Also that his teeth had aged and misaligned, causing them to affect the tear ducts and cause his weepy eye and crusty face.
the second time he had an anaesthetic the recovery was horrible. he really suffered and took a good 2 days to recover. i vowed not to do it again, once he had trouble eating pellets i fed him on porrige for a month before he struggled again. i decided then that i would rather say goodbye than put him through another dental.
He also had sores on his feet. i think it was mainly related to him teeth-as he was washing he was dribbling, which was causing the fur to harden and skin to sore. i had to put vaseline and baby socks on his feet to protect them until the fur grew back.
He also had spinal arthritis and possible kidney probelms.

11 is a fab age for a bunny, and it sounds like your guy is suffering from the same things Sherpa did.
has your rabbit had an anaesthetics before? i think that if he does need one then you should definately do pre-op bloods to test his kidney function. Just read that his litter training has gone to pot, possibley a sign of kidney issues.

its a hard call, as for sherpa, he was soo happy still, it was his teeth that had let him down. it was the hardest decision iv ever had to make.

if i were you, i think i would let him be and continue him as normal. you can get tear ducts flushed consciously, so it might be worth seeing if that helps his eyes. if not then just treat the symptoms by putting vaseline on the sore areas. if he does start with dental problems and has trouble eating then personally i wouldnt put him under anaesthetic and would just do as i did with Sherpa. it is really tough looking after an older bunny, as lots of little things go wrong, but you dont feel its enough to justify saying goodbye.

if he is not moving around a lot, he may have arthritis and metacam could help. it does however affect the kidneys. you can get glucosamine supplemented rabbit food for the joints, which i found really helped Sherpa.

im not sure iv given very helpful advice here, but if you want to know anymore about my experiacnces with it all then just give me a pm. x

Hi Sherpa

Your post has helped me alot. All the things you have mentioned seems related to my bunny too. I just noticed tonight that his left side underneath his jaw is swollen. I have a feeling it may be an abcess as that's the side where his eye weeps most.

Taking him to the vets tomorrow. :s I think it will be bad news...

van1lla said:

Hi Sherpa

Your post has helped me alot. All the things you have mentioned seems related to my bunny too. I just noticed tonight that his left side underneath his jaw is swollen. I have a feeling it may be an abcess as that's the side where his eye weeps most.

Taking him to the vets tomorrow. :s I think it will be bad news...

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i am sorry abcesses can be hard to treat, especially without sedation. let us know what the vet says. Fingers crossed for you. x

I had a look this morning again but I don't think it's an abcess as it's no where near his face. It's more like a tumour growth on the side/shoulder

Other half taking him to vets this morning. I had a terrible nights sleep.

The can get abscesses all over tbh - but it could be something else.

I've had some pretty nasty ones in buns - one on the side - it was huge, & one behind another bun's eye socket:shock: Both buns had operations & recovered well

Either way bun needs pain relief & anti biotics. Hope he's ok

hoefully it is nothing serious. keep me posted, sending vibes your way.

Got the call from the other half. Prognosis not good. Going to spend some time with him tonight and tomorrow he will be PTS....